Vol. 38  No. 45               AUGUST 14, 2011           Cycle A                                              XX  SUNDAY OF THE YEAR                               God's Kingdom is open to all peoples ENTRANCE ANTIPHON God, our protector, keep us in mind; always give strength to your people. For if we can be with you even one day, it is better than a thousand without you. (Ps 83:10-11) PENITENTIAL RITE The poor Canaanite woman, in today’s Gospel, is held up to us as an example of faith, courage and love. St Matthew sees Jesus as having broken down the barrier between Jews and Gentiles. Even though his mission was restricted to Israel, Jesus did reach out to individual Gentiles such as the Canaanite woman. Let us ask God pardon and mercy for the times we have shown discrimination and indifference towards the poor and the unfortunate, who have dared to approach us. (Pause) I confess… Glory to God… OPENING PRAYER God our Father, may we love you in all things and above all things and reach the joy you have prepared for us beyond all our imagining. We ask this… FIRST READING (The Temple of the messianic age will be a ‘house of prayer’ for all peoples. The universality of salvation is clearly and emphatically stated in the text.) A reading from the Book of Isaiah    (56:1,6-7) Thus says the Lord: “Keep justice, and do righteousness, for soon my salvation will come, and my deliverance be revealed. “The foreigners who join themselves to the Lord, to minister to him, to love the name of the Lord, and to be his servants, every one who keeps the Sabbath, and does not profane it, and holds fast my covenant—these I will bring to my holy mountain, and make them joyful in my house of prayer; their burnt offerings and their sacrifices will be accepted on my altar; for my house shall be called a house of prayer for all peoples.” This is the Word of the Lord PSALM   (66) Response: Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. O God, be gracious and bless us and let your face shed its light upon us. So will your ways be known upon the earth and all nations learn your saving help. Let the nations be glad and exult, for you rule the world with justice. With fairness you rule the peoples, you guide the nations on earth. Let the peoples praise you, O God; let all the peoples praise you. May God still give us his blessing till the ends of the earth revere him. SECOND READING (God never takes back his gifts. Though the Jews rejected Christ’s offer of salvation, God will never abandon the chosen people. Those who return to Him are sure of obtaining mercy and salvation.) A reading from the Letter of St Paul to the Romans   (11:13-15,29-32) Now I am speaking to you Gentiles. Inasmuch then as I am an apostle to the Gentiles, I magnify my ministry in order to make my fellow Jews jealous, and thus save some of them. For if their rejection means the reconciliation of the world, what will their acceptance mean but life from the dead? For the gifts and the call of God are irrevocable. Just as you were once disobedient to God but now have received mercy because of their disobedience, so they have now been disobedient in order that by the mercy shown to you they also may receive mercy. For God has consigned all men to disobedience, that he may have mercy upon all. This is the Word of the Lord ACCLAMATION Alleluia, alleluia! I am the living bread which came down from heaven, says the Lord; if any one eats of this bread, he will live for ever. Alleluia! (Jn 6:51) GOSPEL (In today’s Gospel we meet a pagan woman, who had extraordinary faith in Jesus, a faith that was rewarded with the cure of her sick daughter.) A reading from the Holy Gospel according to St Matthew  (15:21-28) Jesus withdrew to the district of Tyre and Sidon. And behold, a Canaanite woman from that region came out and cried, “Have mercy on me, O Lord, Son of David; my daughter is severely possessed by a demon.” But he did not answer her a word. And his disciples came and begged him, saying, “Send her away, for she is crying after us.” He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” But she came and knelt before him saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their master’s table.” Then Jesus answered her, “O woman, great is your faith! Be it done for you as you desire.” And her daughter was healed instantly. This is the Gospel of the Lord I believe in God,/the Father Almighty,/ Creator of heaven and earth./ I believe in Jesus Christ,/his only Son, our Lord./ He was conceived by the power of the Holy Spirit/ and born of the Virgin Mary./He suffered under Pontius Pilate,/was crucified, died, and was buried./He descended to the dead./On the third day he rose again./He ascended into Heaven,/and is seated at the right hand of the Father./He will come again to judge the living and the dead./I believe in the Holy Spirit,/the Holy Catholic Church,/the communion of saints,/the forgiveness of sins,/the resurrection of the body,/and the life everlasting./ Amen. PRAYER OF THE FAITHFUL Cel: Dear brothers and sisters, the Canaanite woman is an example to us of perseverance, courage, love and faith. Let us, with filial faith, bring our needs and concerns to our heavenly Father, saying: Response: Lord, have mercy on us. 1. For the Pope, the bishops and priests: that they may have a strong and tough faith like that of the Canaanite woman—a faith that refuses to give up, a faith that impels us to persevere and to struggle. 2. For mothers: that they may receive the gift of faith to struggle and to persevere. Reward them for their self-sacrifice, unselfishness, suffering and hard labour. 3. For government officials and ministers: that in their planning they may not forget the poor and disadvantaged members of society. Grant them courage and determination to implement their development programmes. 4. For parents: that those parents who have sick or disabled children may be brave in their suffering and endure it with patience and love. Grant them courage and strength to bear the pain. 5. For all gathered in this assembly: that we may keep in mind the truth, that unselfishness enables us to put up with almost anything. Help us to transcend all barriers of prejudice, race, caste or culture, and love and serve all without discrimination. (Pray for local and personal needs) Cel: God of mercy and compassion, grant us the grace to be sensitive to the feelings and needs of others, especially the poor, the oppressed and the exploited. We ask this... PRAYER OVER THE GIFTS Lord, accept our sacrifice as a holy exchange of gifts. By offering what you have given us may we receive the gift of yourself. We ask this… PREFACE   (P 33) Father, all-powerful and ever-living God, we do well always and everywhere to give you thanks. All things are of your making, all times and seasons obey your laws, but you chose to create man in your image, setting him over the whole world in all its wonder. You made man the steward of creation, to praise you day by day for the marvels of your wisdom and power, through Jesus Christ our Lord. We praise you, Lord, with all the angels in their song of joy: All: Holy, holy, holy… COMMUNION ANTIPHON With the Lord there is mercy, and fullness of redemption. (Ps 129:7) PRAYER AFTER COMMUNION God of mercy, by this sacrament you make us one with Christ. By becoming more like him on earth, may we come to share his glory in heaven, where he lives and reigns for ever and ever.     LITURGY  AND  LIFE   “To think of a mother,” wrote John Burke, “is to recall her unselfish devotion, her limitless, unfaltering love through good and evil report, never wavering, but growing stronger and stronger with the years; and to remember that she asks nothing in return for herself; she asks of us and for us that we be good men and women. If we fail, she does not love us less, but more. Wonderful, constant, miraculous mother’s love!” Yes, indeed, in today’s Gospel we hear of such a true mother in the Canaanite woman, whose love for her daughter was so great. As a mother she was desperate because her dear daughter was seriously ill, and undoubtedly she must have tried ways and means to heal her. Perhaps, she prayed to her gods and sought the help of the pagan priests. Though nothing worked, her motherly love survived all difficulties. The Canaanite woman is persistent, stubborn and determined, and clearly knows what she wants and whom to go to. She finds Jesus on the way. She, being a non-Jew, and a woman in a male dominated society, faces opposition ultimately even from the disciples. In those days when a woman talked to a man openly it amounted to public scandal and secondly, it made the (Jewish) man ritually defiled. But nothing stops or bothers her because she is before Jesus, the Son of David. Now Jesus starts testing her faith. Jesus takes the example of a ‘dog’ to describe her. Why does he do that? Is it to hurt her, or to test her? Obviously it is to test her faith. Her faith in Jesus shouldn’t be only for the sake of healing of her daughter but to bring her to Jesus for the rest of her life. As a reward of her faith Jesus heals her daughter. For Jesus, however, she’s a woman of faith and hence, gains his admiration. A sage once said, “Prayer is the weakness of God and the strength of human beings.” The good thief wins the heart of Jesus just by one sentence of sincere prayer: “Lord, remember me, when you come into your Kingdom” (Lk 23:42). Today we find this Canaanite woman winning God’s favour because of her persistence and her language of faith. She has proved the words of the Prophet Habakkuk right: “The just man lives by his faith” (2:4). We like Jesus’ openness and his willingness to admit that he was harsh. The woman’s dialogue with Jesus shows that she was not insulted. This Canaanite woman, a foreigner, gets Jesus to change his mind in a lovely exchange of words. Her response broadens Jesus’ horizon. The wonderful thing is that Jesus welcomes it. He gives her space to feel free through a friendly dialogue and brings her closer to him. She finds her life worth living. Finally, what Jesus teaches us is that as he tore down the walls of separation and division between Jews and Gentiles, we also should work for unity in our Christian community. One belongs to the community of Christ by virtue of faith. By faith we are graced and blessed. Hence, Jesus and the Church, which is His Body are meant for all. —Fr Alex Anandam, ssp     August  2011                READINGS  OF  THE  WEEK                     Psalter Week 4 15 Mon (W) ASSUMPTION OF MARY & Independence Day, Solemnity, (Day of Obligation) 16 Tue (W) St Stephen of Hungary, Jgs 6:11-24a/ Ps 85:9. 11-12.13-14/ Mt 19:23-30 17 Wed (G) Jgs 9:6-15/ Ps 21:2-3.4-5.6-7/ Mt 20:1-16 18 Thu (G) Jgs 11:29-39a/ Ps 40:5.7-8a.8b-9.10/ Mt 22:1-14 19 Fri (W) St John Eudes, Ruth 1:1.3-6.14b-16.22/Ps 146:5-6ab.6c-78-9a. 9bc-10/        Mt 22:34-40 20 Sat (W) St Bernard, Ruth 2:1-3. 8-11; 4:13-17/ Ps 128: 1b-2. 3. 4. 5/ Mt 23:1-12